A conversation with the director of Bridesmaids, the Judd Apatow-produced movie starring Kristen Wiig, about sexism, scatology, and why he always wears a suit

ESQUIRE: What are you and Judd Apatow doing involved in a movie about what it's like to be a bridesmaid? Is his involvement a reaction to accusations of sexism after Knocked Up?

PAUL FEIG: It's not a direct reaction. Mainly it's because Kristen Wiig was so funny in Knocked Up and Judd said to her, "You're hilarious. You should write a movie for yourself." He never told Kristen to write a script about a bunch of women. He told her to write a script that she thought was funny. She and her writing partner came up with the idea of the bridesmaids and the wedding. What attracted me to the project is that women are underserved in movies and comedy anyway, and I thought that Judd had an undeserved reputation related to women.

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ESQ: There's a pretty disgusting scatological scene at a bridal boutique. Was that added to appeal to a broader audience?

PF: We like set pieces, which is a big scene that has funny stuff in it basically. They're trying on dresses and there's a weird little rivalry between two of the characters as to which dress they're going to buy, and I remember very specifically in the writers' room one day, Judd says, "We need something big to happen. They all get food poisoning." One of the first drafts of the scene I wrote was way over the top. Cooler heads prevailed and we reined it in a bit.

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ESQ: Has your wife seen it yet?

PF: Many times. I show her every cut just to get her reactions. You have to consult. Bad women's comedies are made by men who didn't consult enough women.

ESQ: Freaks and Geeks was the start for so many people: you, Apatow, Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jason Segel. What's your take on it now, ten years after it was canceled?

PF: I hate to say we were "ahead of our time" because it sounds like we were so great but nobody got us. But it was subtle, very small, ultrarealistic. Tonally it wasn't where people wanted to be. The bottom line was we were up against Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. I think it's amazing that we even got to do 18 episodes.

ESQ: We've read that you wear a suit every day. Why's that?

PF: Philosophically, it's out of respect for the cast and crew. But ever since I was a little kid, I've felt comfortable in a suit. It all started when my mom bought me a three-piece Pierre Cardin suit. I wore that thing everywhere. Eventually I realized I was going to be the kid who got beat up in school, but I kept wearing it. With a suit, even if you're having a nervous breakdown, you still look like you're in charge.